1. Technical Field
The present disclosure is directed to connector assemblies for use with electrical wires/cables that include a plug member, particularly preterminated wires/cables. The present disclosure is further directed to connector assemblies and associated plugs that are adapted for delivery of “Category 6A” level performance in an unshielded twisted pair (UTP) environment.
2. Background Art
With the continued evolution of data communication applications, performance standards and requirements continue to advance. The structured cabling industry has experienced a progression from Category 3 level performance standards/requirements, through Category 5/5E, Category 6, and more recently Category 6A performance standards/requirements. At each stage, manufacturers of cabling and connector technologies have been required to address data communication capabilities and limitations of their existing product offerings. Of primary importance in meeting industry requirements is the control/minimization of noise/cross-talk encountered in the connector assemblies. Noise/cross-talk issues become more pronounced as data communication frequencies are increased.
Typical connector assemblies include a jack and a plug that are adapted to detachably engage to effect a data communication connection. Typical RJ-45 connector assemblies include a jack and a plug, each of which includes eight conductors in a predefined side-by-side orientation. Various techniques have been developed to control/address noise and crosstalk that are generated in the jack/plug interface, including capacitive compensation in the jack and/or plug. Noise/crosstalk compensation may be introduced through physical arrangements of the conductors within the jack and/or plug, as well as compensation introduced on printed circuit boards associated with the jack and/or plug.
Alternative conductor layouts for purposes of jack/plug combinations have been proposed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,162,077 to Laes et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 6,193,533 to De Win et al. disclose male/female connector designs wherein shielded wire pairs are arranged with a plurality of side-by-side contacts and additional contact pairs positioned at respective corners of the male/female connector housings. The foregoing arrangement of contacts/contact pairs for shielded cables is embodied in an International Standard—IEC 60603-7-7—the contents of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference. The noted IEC standard applies to high speed communication applications with 8 position, pairs in metal foil (PIMF) shielded, free and fixed connectors, for data transmissions with frequencies up to 600 MHz.
In completing cabling installations, it is generally necessary to feed wiring/cabling from location-to-location, e.g., through conduits and/or in open spaces behind walls, above ceilings and below floors. Frequently, the wire/cable is fed from spools, introduced through the back/side of a wiring box, and terminated by an installation professional, e.g., by punching down individual wires with respect to insulation displacement connectors (IDCs) or the like. According to this conventional installation technique, the installer is able to define the length of each wiring/cabling run at the time of installation, thereby maintaining flexibility. However, the termination process is time-consuming and it is necessary to test/confirm system performance after the installation is complete.
As an alternative installation technique, preterminated wires/cables may be employed to achieve point-to-point wiring connectivity. A preterminated wire/cable generally includes a plug that is pre-mounted with respect to at least one end of a predetermined length of wire/cable. The plug is generally mounted with respect to the wire/cable by the manufacturer and, as part of the manufacturer's quality control procedures, performance at the interface between the wire/cable and the pre-mounted plug is verified before shipment to the installation site. Devices have been developed to encase and protect the pre-mounted plug during the installation process, e.g., as the plug is fed from point-to-point by the installation team. In this way, the potential for damage to the wire/plug connections and associated data communication performance is minimized.
For installations that employ preterminated wires/cables, the necessary wire/cable lengths, types and colors are generally determined before the requisite wiring/cabling is ordered from a manufacturer. Once the length calculations are made, an order is generated specifying the wires/cables that are required for a specific installation (with appropriate margins for error/flexibility), and the manufacturer preassembles terminated cables as specified. The terminated ends, i.e., the pre-mounted plugs, are generally fed into a wiring box and connected to a rearwardly facing jack positioned therewithin to complete a wiring connection. The foregoing jack may be part of a jack assembly that includes oppositely directed jack units, each adapted to receive a plug therewithin. Thus, the rearwardly directed jack generally receives the preassembled plug associated with a preterminated wire/cable, and the forwardly (or outwardly) directed jack generally receives a plug associated with an end user application, e.g., a computer, printer or the like.
Despite efforts to date, a need remains for connector assemblies and techniques that provide enhanced flexibility and/or performance for preterminated wiring/cabling applications. A need also remains for connector assemblies and techniques that facilitate interaction between plugs that feature different contact layouts/alignments. Still further, a need remains for connector assemblies and techniques that facilitate enhanced data communication performance in an environment that includes, in whole or in part, unshielded twisted pair (UTP) wires/cables. These and other needs are satisfied by the connector assemblies and techniques disclosed herein.